On Friday morning we left Moab first thing in the morning. It had rained overnight so we had to pack up wet. Luckily we had enough room in the van to keep the wet tent away from our other gear — and it dried quickly. We had a long day planned: Capitol Reef, Bolder Mountain, Escalante Staircase, Red Canyon (skipping Bryce for the moment), and aiming at our next camping stop near Glendale, UT.

We drove back up to the I-70 from Moab and headed west, past the Green River, and turned off south on UT24. Again not the fastest route to Capitol Reef but the most scenic. UT 24 travels parallel to the San Rafael Swell and sweeps by Goblin State Park. The swell contains these marvellous saw back formations along the a block fault — if you’ve seen the Star Trek episode where Kirk fights the Gorn, you’ve seen these formations. We did not have time to drive close enough for a good photo! UT24 veres westward at Hanksville. From Hanksville you can see the northernmost shoulders of the Henry Mountains (photo below). UT24 then follows the Fremont river and progressively enters a deepening canyon as you approach Fruita (UT not CO) and the Capitol Reef.

We took the scenic road in the Capitol Reef National Park, but did not take the wash/road into the Capitol Dome area. The weather was good, but we did not have time for a deep excursion. None the less, I was able to get some nice photos of the Reef.

The Henry Mountains. As we travelled to the Capitol Reef, we passed through Hanksville. Just outside of town I took this picture of the Henry Mountains. We're (more or less) north of them here. You can also see these mountains from the west in my pictures from the Boulder Mountain.Capitol Reef Colour. This view of the Reef shows the array of colour that can be seen in the reef: Limestone, sandstone, volcanic ash, silt stone. etc.Capitol Reef Colour. A slightly more distant view of the colours in the Reef augmented by the colour of the desert floor and the 'usual suspect' plant life - sage, Mormon tea, Utah junipers...Another Long View North. This long view is taken from near the entrance to the Capitol Gorge. Although the reed extent is not a visible as it is in some of the other views, a large context is available from the high walls of the reef on the right, through the extent of the reef running north, the rise of Boulder mountain in the distant left and the colourful desert valley in between.Oyster Formation Rock Fall. Along certain parts of the Reef, huge blocks of rock from the Oyster Formation have fallen from the reef and lay jumbled alongside the road. It's named the Oyster Formation for the large pock marks, pockets that contained clusters of oysters that have fallen out of the larger rocks.Oyster Rock Wall. You can see the rock wall where the large blocks of 'oyster' rock have fallen. That layer is on the top part of the reef shown here. The colourful multi-layered formation underneath is the Moenkopi.The Capitol Gorge and Tourists. You can see the Golden Throne in the distance in the right side. The main formation is a cut through the Reef where the Capitol Gorge Wash flows. I also manage to capture a few tourists -- Cathy, taking her own picture, and my Son sauntering back from the picnic area.The Capitol Reef Wall. A view north along the majority extent of the Capitol Reef. The Fault Block structure and tilt of the rocks is quite evident. I believe it's the Moenkopi formation that can be seen in many locations in the Colorado Plateau that gives the beautiful colour seen in the lower layers of the Reef.The Capitol Reef Wall. Another view north along the extent of the Reef -- just a slightly different aspect than shot number #1.

 

Moab 2017
Boulder Mountain 2017